Wondering about Salt Spools

[ramblingrabbit]

I can get the plain old white salt spools from the local feed/farm shop where we go all the time. But I've never seen the trace mineral salt spools there. I would have to try to order them online, and pay shipping on top of the higher price (sometimes twice what the plain spools cost), and shipping to Hawaii is always more than other places, especially when you are buying several of something sold individually--eg one pet store I found online in CA would charge over fifteen dollars to ship me a mere ten bulk mineral spools. :shock:

So I want to know what people's opinions are on the mineral spools and whether they are worth going to great lengths to acquire.

For context, these rabbits of ours are meat breeds being kept for that purpose, on a fairly diverse diet that includes a diversity of fresh fodder including garden greens, hibiscus, ti leaves, grasses, weeds, legume leaves, as well as oats, sunflower seeds, root crops, bananas and sugarcane, and sometimes a little alfalfa pellets. So the diet is very well-rounded to begin with. They have been on little mineral salt rocks from a pet store and then later on plain salt spools, since we transitioned off formulated pellets last spring, and nobody's died yet.

I tried to make a little poll on this to make it easier and provide a way to get some input, even if folks can't take the time to respond in detail--and just for fun... :bunnyhop:

Thanks!

 

[Mickey328]

I get the bricks...they're actually made for horses but they have the salt as well as all the trace minerals. I just take a hammer and knock off a hunk and put it in the cage. They lick on it as needed

 

[Dood]

I use to dissolve the smaller brown mineral blocks and dehydrate them in icecube trays with a zip tie imbedded in them for cage attachment.

Now a days you can get loose bags of salt rather than blocks which would be easier to turn into blocks rather than chopping up and liquefying a block.

You could use tuna tins instead of ice cube trays (I made mine for mice)

 

[dayna]

I use to dissolve the smaller brown mineral blocks and dehydrate them in icecube trays with a zip tie imbedded in them for cage attachment.

That is one of the most genius things I think I've ever heard.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I voted for mineral blocks.

However, I provide my horses plain white salt and mineral salt because I have heard that they will not always use a mineral block enough if they don't need the minerals even when lacking salt. The best option would be to provide both- but I haven't yet done this with my herd.

Can you buy the 50lb blocks for horses and just knock pieces off with a hammer? It is much more cost effective that way.

Unless, of course, you use your husband's Skil-Saw to cut uniform blocks because you are a- um- perfectionist... in which case you will ruin a good saw and never live it down, and should have just bought the astronomically overpriced salt spools in the first place. :roll:

 

[ramblingrabbit]

Gee, thanks, I never even thought of these other options for my poll. You guys are clever! I knew I came to the right place...

I'll look into larger mineral blocks and see what they have in town.

One question though: isn't having a block of salt rolling around directly on the wire going to rust out the floors faster? Have you had a problem with that, Mickey and MSD?

 

[MamaSheepdog]

One question though: isn't having a block of salt rolling around directly on the wire going to rust out the floors faster? Have you had a problem with that, Mickey and MSD?

I use tuna cans zip tied to the cage for the blocks. In some of my cages the salt is on the wire, but it is so dry here most of the time that it isn't a problem. In a humid environment you would definitely want to put it into a container of some sort.

 

[Piper]

I voted for mineral blocks.

However, I provide my horses plain white salt and mineral salt because I have heard that they will not always use a mineral block enough if they don't need the minerals even when lacking salt. The best option would be to provide both- but I haven't yet done this with my herd.

Can you buy the 50lb blocks for horses and just knock pieces off with a hammer? It is much more cost effective that way.

Unless, of course, you use your husband's Skil-Saw to cut uniform blocks because you are a- um- perfectionist... in which case you will ruin a good saw and never live it down, and should have just bought the astronomically overpriced salt spools in the first place. :roll:

I have been Highly frustrated by a block of mineral salt, I bought a year ago, and acts like a rock, when I take the hammer to it.

Skill Saw :hmm:, willing to elaborate??? Saw, or just the blade?

 

[HoppyMeal]

I use both spools. It seems like they lick the salt spool more than the mineral spool. Since I feed a pellet feed they probably get most of their minerals from it. They seem to want to play with the spools more so than lick them.

 

[luvabunny]

It is my opinion that rabbits on a pelleted diet receive all the salt they need from the pellets. That said, I did try hanging up a little salt spool in each cage when I first got back into them.

When I decided to take them down, tho all rabbits received free feed of the same pellet, some spools were still like new while others were almost completely gone. I never actually saw any of the rabbits licking on the spool. I assume those whose were almost completely gone were playing with it. I never saw any more water consumption or any benefit otherwise.

The reason I decided to take them down was because they were rusting out my cages in a bad way. Any humidity over about 50% and they would literally drip. I make my cages from all brand new wire. I expect to have to replace the area where I had the spools hanging within the year, and the floors where they dripped in less than that.

I don't believe the deer or horse blocks would do that. They are formulated for outside use, while the spools are mostly for indoor pets. If you are going to use any type of salt, I would make sure it sets inside something, like a tuna can.

My rabbits are still free fed on pelleted food, and I will not be offering salt again.

 

[akane]

Plain salt spools are actually useless if not even unhealthy. Hard trace blocks are better but still contain a lot of salt they don't need. I prefer the soft horse blocks and just chisel some off or use loose horse or goat minerals in a separate dish.

 

[ramblingrabbit]

Thanks for the advice and very clever tricks!

Update: On my latest trip into town, after all that, would you believe it, I did actually find some mineral salt spools at the feedstore. They sell them right out of a bulk box too, so they're only 57 cents, which is half the price of the CHEAPEST ones I saw online (the plain ones I bought here were 50). I'll keep the other ideas in mind for the future, but for now at that price I can afford to splurge on a few spools--the does are the only ones who go through them quickly anyway.

 

[bobqdevon]

I get the smaller mineral blocks from TSC, they're about the size of a index card and about 3-4" thick, weigh 4lbs each, for around $2 per block. Each one lasts at least 6 months per cage. My bunnies love them. And I;m pretty sure you can get them shipped in from TSC.

 

[azbowhunter]

The horse blocks here are the 50 pound sort of cube looking things...
We use them for our horses, so when our buns need little pieces, I grab the bfh and go bust a few off.
The horses don't mind, and the buns seem to like the minerals. They don't consume much...a fist size piece lasts about 6 months.

 

[SatinsRule]

I have chosen to stay away from feeds which recommend that you provide salt at all times in addition to the pelleted rations they're trying to sell you. That eliminates the "need" to put salt spools into the cages.

The wiring on the cages will rust fast enough on their own. No need to accelerate it by putting salt in the presence of water and humidity into an all-wire cage.

Just my $0.02 worth.

 

[bobqdevon]

Ok, the link didn't post in my last post. UGH stupid computer. Here's the ones I use:

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/a ... brick-4-lb

 

[zee]

I have the salt licks, but, my buns are on pellets.

 

[ramblingrabbit]

I have chosen to stay away from feeds which recommend that you provide salt at all times in addition to the pelleted rations they're trying to sell you. That eliminates the "need" to put salt spools into the cages.

The wiring on the cages will rust fast enough on their own. No need to accelerate it by putting salt in the presence of water and humidity into an all-wire cage.

Just my $0.02 worth.

Makes sense. However, if you're trying to do forage-based feeding, as I am, you don't have much choice but to supply salt...

 

[SatinsRule]

I have chosen to stay away from feeds which recommend that you provide salt at all times in addition to the pelleted rations they're trying to sell you. That eliminates the "need" to put salt spools into the cages.

The wiring on the cages will rust fast enough on their own. No need to accelerate it by putting salt in the presence of water and humidity into an all-wire cage.

Just my $0.02 worth.

Makes sense. However, if you're trying to do forage-based feeding, as I am, you don't have much choice but to supply salt...

My way doesn't work for everyone. I'll readily admit/acknowledge that.